Abu Dhabi: So, finally football’s annual summer transfer saga has come to a merciful end following Paul Pogba’s long-mooted move to Manchester United for a world-record fee of £89 million (Dh426.6m).
But the Frenchman’s much-hyped arrival at Old Trafford is unlikely to silence the endless stream of chatter about whether the 23-year-old is worth such a gargantuan sum.
Some Manchester United legends remain divided on the issue — a microcosm of the debate which has raged among all football fans all summer.
Dwight Yorke, in an interview with Gulf News in Dubai last month, backed his former team-mate Paul Scholes’s assertion that Pogba was well short of the celestial level of the world’s best two players, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
Pogba does not plunder 50 goals a season a la that eminent duo, they argued, nor does he decide big matches with the same remarkable regularity.
He was largely lacklustre for France at their recent European Championship on home soil, for instance, having been heralded as the poster-boy of Les Bleus’ campaign.
In contrast, another ex-United man Rio Ferdinand believes United’s massive outlay will yield rich dividends in years to come.
“Paul is a huge talent and someone with the personality to handle that price tag,” Ferdinand told BBC Sport on Tuesday.
“He can do everything. He is still working out the best way to use all of his weapons but, once he does, he will be an absolute monster of a player.”
At the end of the day, however, it is pointless discussing Pogba’s worth or otherwise given the money-drenched and innately illogical world of modern football.
The fact is, Manchester United have the lavish riches to spend on someone who, albeit remains far from the finished article, is a considerable talent and globally renowned.
He is physically imposing at 6ft 3ins, athletic, combative and, while not a prolific goalscorer (as 28 goals in four seasons at Juventus testify), can undoubtedly hone his attacking threat under the canny tutelage of Jose Mourinho.
How a sterile, ponderous and thoroughly impotent United could have done with Pogba’s forceful thrusts from midfield in the last couple of seasons.
His presence will also be welcomed by Wayne Rooney, who will return to his favoured No 10 position after his goal threat was blunted by being deployed as a deep-lying midfielder by ex-boss Louis van Gaal.
The marquee signing is also a magnificent statement from intent from United that, although they will not be in the Champions League this season, they retain a box-office appeal.
To beat the reigning 11-time champions, and traditional Galactico magnets Real Madrid, thunders out the message to the rest of Europe’s elite that United mean serious business.
The recruitment of serial winners Mourinho and Zlatan Ibrahimovic has already made the Red Devils a fearsome proposition, and Pogba’s arrival merely underlines this fact.
But what must Sir Alex Ferguson — the man who sold the teenage Pogba in 2012 after feeling he was too raw for first-team football — be feeling?
Again, it is senseless — and churlish, given the legendary Scot’s luminous achievements in the game — to reflect on what might have been.
Ferguson also jettisoned another midfield prodigy, Ravel Morrison, in 2012 — and whatever happened to him?
Now it is up to Pogba to grasp the rare second chance afforded him at United and prove he can be a superstar and not just another overrated youngster of rich promise.
Top 5 World Transfer Fees
1. Paul Pogba 89m pounds (Dh426.4m, Juventus to Manchester United)
2. Gareth Bale 85.3m pounds (Dh408.7m, Tottenham Hotspur to Real Madrid)
3. Cristiano Ronaldo 80m pounds (Dh383.2m, Manchester United to Real Madrid)
4. Gonzalo Higuaín 75.3m pounds (Dh360.7m, Napoli to Juventus)
5. Luis Suarez 75m pounds (Dh359.2m, Liverpool to Barcelona)
Top 5 Manchester United Transfer Fees
1. Paul Pogba 89m pounds (Dh426.4m, from Juventus)
2. Angel Di Maria 59.7m pounds (Dh285.9m, from Real Madrid)
3. Anthony Martial 57.6m pounds (Dh275.9 m, from Monaco)
4. Juan Mata 37.1m pounds (Dh177.7m, from Chelsea)
5. Dimitar Berbatov 30.75 pounds (Dh147.3m, Tottenham Hotspur)
